For his involvement in a plot to kill the former President of the United States Donald Trump, Mr Asif Merchant, 46, was arrested on Tuesday by FBI agents. Originating in Iran, an extensive plan was hatched: documents were stolen,organized protests were held, and eventually a very detailed murder-for-hire.
The Iranian Connection
Merchant now faces charges of conspiracy to murder a former U.S. official. According to FBI Director Christopher Wray, the plot was “straight out of the Iranian playbook.” Authorities believe Merchant planned the attack on behalf of Iran, likely in retaliation for the 2020 killing of Iranian General Qassem Soleimani.
The charges were announced on Tuesday by U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland. “Over the past few years, the Justice Department has been engaged in serious and sustained efforts to quash Iranian efforts toward killing American officials in retribution for the assassination of General Qassem Soleimani,” he said. Garland did not identify the target as ex-President Trump but court documents show the plot was indeed against a U.S. senior official
The investigation also revealed that Merchant has ties to both Pakistan and Iran, with wives and children in both countries.
Anatomy of the Plot to Murder Trump
Court documents disclose a complicated assassination plan. There were three main stages to the plot:
- Break into the target’s home and steal documents and USB drives
- Organize protests to create a distraction
- Murder a political figure or high government official
For each part of his plan, Merchant had a secret code name:
“Tee-shirts” meant protests
“Flannel shirts” stood for document theft
The assassination was the “Fleece jacket”
“Yarn-dye” pas for meetings
FBI Sting Operation
In a clever sting operation, FBI agents posed as hitmen to gather evidence against Merchant. He met with these undercover officers in New York in mid-June, detailing his plans and discussing various scenarios for carrying out the assassination.Merchant repeatedly raised this issue of theft and murder. He said that he could supply information on whom to kill once he left the U.S.
He agreed to pay $5,000 in cash as an advance for the assassination services, successfully delivering this payment on June 21.
“Fortunately, the killers Merchant tried to hire were undercover FBI agents,” said Christie Curtis, the Acting Assistant Director of the New York FBI Field Office.The undercover operation did prove to be crucial in preventing the plot.
The Arrest and Its Aftermath
On July 12th, Merchant was arrested as he tried to flee the country at 8:30 p.m. Law enforcement agencies had a month to set up the plot. Likewise, in Butler, Pennsylvania, just a month ago there was another isolated and separate murder attempt Trump that officials believe have no connection to this case.
The attack on the former President is not the only incident that has made headlines. A man from Virginia threatened to kill Democratic Party presidential nominee Kamala Harris last week and was taken into custody. The investigation is underway and details are yet to emerge about the people involved and the full scope of the plan.
